A Parallel Planets piece by Unknown
Parallel Planets presents Mira Heo
in The World Forgetting
Story and Interview by Erin Emocling
Mentioned: Bernardo Bertolucci, Seoul-searching, and a universal language
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It was during one of my usual, mindless bouts on the Internet when I saw a portrait of a girl that haunted me until I looked closer.
Mira Heo, said the caption.
At first, I wasn’t sure if it was a name of a boy or girl and if it was the model or photographer’s name. One thing’s for sure, though: the girl on the photo pierced me. She had almond-shaped eyes—the Asian kind of eyes that make people from the other side of globe envious.
The more pictures I browsed, the more doubtful and awed I became: were these taken with film? I looked for imperfections, like grains and light leaks, which make a film photo look, ironically, perfect. I told myself, “Maybe not, the images have a certain tinge of crisp, too crisp.” But there was something about the images, something that made me look closer, that tells me that, “Yes, these are film.”
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| photo by Mira Heo |
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| photo by Mira Heo |
I only had one way to find out. I crossed my fingers as I sent my email to her and hoped that she speaks English so I could know more about her and her incredible work.
In less than a day, I got a reply. It turns out that the girl on the photo is both the model and the photographer.
Her name is Mira Heo and she’s from Seoul, South Korea.
Mira has an ongoing love affair with film. As a film photographer myself, seeing her self-portraits makes me wish that I should’ve thought of doing her concepts first. To me, that’s how brilliant they are.
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| photo by Mira Heo |
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| photo by Mira Heo |
I exchanged a few more messages with her and I learned about some other things that we have in common: film directors, like Jean Luc Godard, Stanley Kubrick, and Wong Kar Wai, and Korean fried chicken, too.
I’ve gone to Seoul last year for a couple of months and I always brought my Konica C35 with me. But I never came across anyone with a film camera while I was there. Maybe I was just in the wrong part of the city. If only I already knew Mira back then, then maybe I could’ve met her in person and to take a photograph of her, too.
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| photo by Mira Heo |
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| photo by Mira Heo |
Today, at this wee moment, I chuckled at how one of my usual, mindless bouts on the Internet turned into a remarkable chance to know a photographer like Mira.
It’s kismet.
Read on to my interview with Mira Heo and learn about the other kind of film that she adores, her power animal, and what her name would be in another universe. Scroll down to see a few of her best photographs, too.
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Parallel Planets: Tell something about Mira Heo as an artist. When did you begin taking pictures?
Mira Heo: "I studied Photography in a university and I finished in 2005. After that, I just fell in love with photography very quickly. It was new world to me."
Parallel Planets: What defines your photographic style?
Mira Heo: "Actually, I don't know yet. But I prefer to shoot women. "
Parallel Planets: What/Who influences and inspires you?
Mira Heo: "I like so many artists, even amateurs like me. But I love Bernardo Bertolucci lately."
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| photo by Mira Heo |
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| photo by Mira Heo |
Mira Heo: "My aim is to catch the beauty of women around me. I think that's what make my photos look similar."
Parallel Planets: What's in your camera bag?
Mira Heo: "I use both film and digital but I like film more. I use Canon EOS3, Canon 5D Mark2, Olympus MU1, Nikon N80. I usually use 50mm and 24-70mm, and sometimes 35mm. I want to get an 85mm, too!"
Parallel Planets: Apart from photography, what other creative pursuits are you into?
Mira Heo: "I love movies so much and I love several movie directors. I am also into fine art, contemporary art, painting, sculpture, installation art, and architecture."
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| photo by Mira Heo |
What is your power animal? "A cat."
Parallel Planets: In an alternate universe where photography does not exist—
What will your name be? "I will still be known as Mira."
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| photo by Mira Heo |
More from Mira Heo
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